Broken Starlight
by Rowen Inc
Summary: when Sakura gets some very bad news, she receives comfort from an unexpected source. As she struggles to cope with her devastating loss, Julian tries to comfort her, but will she ever open her heart to love again?
1. Prologue: Birth of the Guardian

_Prologue: Birth of the Guardian_

It was a dark and starry night as an old man stood on the ocean's shoreline and watched the meteor shower. Suddenly he noticed with some alarm that one of the meteors was rapidly getting larger and that it was headed his way. Finally the meteor crashed into the sea at least 50 feet away and although the force of the impact threw the old man to the ground, he immediately dove into the sea and swam out to it.

As he reached the impact site he heard the sound of a baby crying and saw a soft pale blue light shining from within the meteor. Slowly he reached out to touch it and as he did, the meteor dissolved in a display of shimmering lights. He could only stare in shock and wonder as there was a baby wrapped in a pale blue membrane that was crying and wiggling. The old man reached down and picked up the wailing infant, and he smiled as the baby immediately stopped crying and laid still in his arms.

"I think I will call you Julian." The old man said softly as he took the baby back to his cave, laid the cocoon by the fire, and laid down and went to sleep.

When the old man woke up the next morning, he was shocked to find the baby had grown into toddler form but was still wrapped in the bluish membrane. The next day it had grown again to child size. The following day it had grown yet again to the size of a teenager. Slowly the boy's body stretched and grew until finally after a week had passed he was the size of an adult.

The old man was surprised at first but every day he watched the expression on the boy's face as he slept. It was almost as if he was dreaming of someone, someone he'd never met before that brought peace to his heart. On the seventh day, the membrane cracked and dissolved as the young man finally sat up, opened his golden brown eyes, and took his first breath. His silvery grey hair fell down around him as he looked at his hands.

"Who…who am I?" he finally croaked as the old man smiled and covered his body with a blanket.

"Your name is Julian, you fell from the sky…" the old man said as Julian kept looking at his hands and would occasionally look up at the old man. "it took you a week to grow from the size of a baby into a full-grown man. You are special and I believe you were made for a very special purpose."

Julian was quiet for a moment as the image of a young woman with brown hair and green eyes flashed across his mind. "I think I was meant to protect someone…her name is Sakura."

Nearly a month had passed and the old man had Julian how to read, write, cook, clean, and how to fight. One day the old man became very sick and he knew that he was going to die. So he called Julian to his bedside.

"Yes father?" Julian asked as he sat next to his father's bedside and held his hand. His hair was now short, he wore a pair of reading glasses, faded blue jeans, and a white t-shirt.

"My son I'm going to die soon and go to heaven." The old man said in a weak voice as he patted Julian's head. "Before I die there are some things you need to know; never reveal the secret of your birth with anyone unless it's the woman you were meant to love. No matter what happens to you know that you are loved and that you are a special gift made by God himself who loves you dearly. And stay away from evil men who would try to use you…and…"

Here the old man stopped and passed away. Julian cried for a little while before he remembered the girl he was meant to protect. Silently he stood up packed what little belongings he had and left for the world of humans.

After many months of searching he finally found her, she was five years younger than he was and had a bubbly smile on her face. He was always close by her side as either himself or as Yue the moon warrior who shared his body with him. This made her boyfriend Li both jealous and nervous at the same time whenever he was around but gradually they became friends and the boy accepted him for who he was.

As for Sakura however, there was an attraction to her immediately but innocently he thought of her as a friend. That all changed one fateful day when Sakura got a phone call that changed their lives forever.


	2. Shattered Dreams

Chapter 1: Shattered Dreams

Yue sat on the branch of a tree that grew close to Sakura's house and watched his mistress silently as she paced back and forth. Syaoran had proposed to her the week before and had just left for China to tell his family the news.

_I know when he's been on your mind  
That distant look is in your eyes  
I thought with time you'd realize it's over, over_

"Hello Kinomoto residence, this is Sakura," the young woman answered cheerfully then as she listened to the other speaker her smile disappeared only to be replaced by a look of pure shock. "…I…I understand thank you for calling…"

_It's not the way I choose to live  
And somethin' somewhere's gotta give  
As sharing this relationship gets older, older_

Even from his perch in the tree, Yue could tell something was wrong from the way her posture changed as she dropped the phone, slumped down in the hallway, and buried her face in her hands.

_You know I'd fight for you but  
How could I fight someone who isn't even there  
I've had the rest of you now  
I want the best of you, I don't care if that's not fair_

"Whatever news she just got it can't be good." Yue mused silently to himself as he flew into the house through her bedroom window. Hurriedly he ran into the hallway as Sakura slowly looked up at him for a moment with tear stained eyes.

_Cause I want it all  
Or nothing at all  
There's nowhere left to fall  
When you reach the bottom it's now or never  
Is it all?  
Or are we just friends  
Is this how it ends  
With a simple telephone call?  
You leave me here with nothing at all_

"The airport just called…Syaoran's plane crashed in the mountains near Hong Kong…there were no survivors…" Sakura said softly as large tears welled up in her eyes and she began sobbing brokenly. _  
_  
_There are time it seems to me  
I'm sharing you with memories  
I feel it in my heart but I don't show it, show it_

"Mistress, I'm sorry for your loss." Yue said gently as he knelt down in front of her and cupped her chin in his hand and gazed into her eyes.

_Then there's times you look at me  
As though I'm all that you could see  
Those times I don't believe it's right I know it, know it_

Then he realized as she looked back at him that she wasn't really looking at him anymore, but someone else. _~Go she needs you now~_

_Don't make me promises baby  
You never did know how to keep them well  
I've had the rest of you now  
I want the best of you it's time to show and tell_

"If there's anything I can do, please let me know." spoke a familiar voice as Yue's wings disappeared and Julian took his place. "Sakura are you all right?"

_Cause I want it all  
Or nothing at all  
There's nowhere left to fall  
When you reach the bottom it's now or never  
Is it all?  
Or are we just friends  
Is this how it ends  
With a simple telephone call?  
You leave me here with nothing_

"It's just…I thought we'd always be together…" Sakura said in a soft tone of voice that barely rose above the sound of a whisper._  
_  
_Cause you and I  
Could lose it all if you've got no more room  
Nowhere inside for me in your life_

"Just because he's gone doesn't mean that he'll be forgotten," Julian said gently as he placed his hand on her shoulder. "as long as you keep his memory alive he will never disappear from your heart. Do you understand?"

_Cause I want it all  
Or nothing at all  
There's nowhere left to fall  
It's now or never  
Is it all?  
Or nothing at all  
There's nowhere left to fall  
When you reach the bottom it's now or never_

Immediately Sakura threw her arms around Julian and began sobbing as she let her head rest on his shoulder. Surprised by her reaction, Julian sat there completely stunned before he finally began gently stroking her back.

_Is it all?  
Or are we just friends  
Is this how it ends  
With a simple telephone call?  
You leave me here with nothing at all  
Or nothing at all  
There's nowhere left to fall  
When you reach the bottom it's now or never_

"Thank you Julian," Sakura murmured softly as she finally began to fall asleep from sheer exhaustion. "I'm glad you're here."

_Is it all?  
Or are we just friends  
Is this how it ends  
With a simple telephone call?  
You leave me here with nothing at all_

"No matter what happens I'll always be there, watching over you."

**Note: **_**"All or Nothing" is performed by O-Town**_


	3. Moving On

_Chapter 2: Moving On_

"Well here are!" Sakura chimed happily as she stepped into her apartment complex and began wandering around the hallways trying to find her apartment number. It was her first day in New York City and she was excited to finally be attending the famous New York University's School of Ballet. Suddenly someone ran into her and sent the items she was holding in her hands crashing to the floor as Sakura fell forward into the arms of a total stranger.

"Are you all right?" the stranger asked her as she stood up and dusted herself off. For some reason the stranger's warm and kind voice sounded familiar, but she had more important matters to attend to.

"Hey! Watch where you're going you creep!"Sakura yelled threateningly as the boy ran off down the hallway.

"Here let me get those for you." the stranger said as he bent down and started picking up her things. Sakura also started picking up her things as well and as they both stood up, their eyes met and she blinked in surprise as she recognized the source of the familiar voice.

"Julian?"

"Sakura?"

"Is that really you?" they both asked at the same time.

"Yep it's really me." Julian answered with a warm smile.

"Where's Yue? Isn't he supposed to be a part of you?" Sakura asked when she realized she didn't sense his presence inside Julian's body.

"After Li's funeral, you went to Eli and had him separate us because you wanted us to be able to lead our own lives without sharing the same body all the time." Julian explained and smiled as he saw the spaced out look on her face. "You forgot about it didn't you?"

"Huh? Oh yeah that's right!" Sakura said as she snapped out of it and laughed. "I guess I did forget about it…So what brings you here and how's Yue doing?"

"Well after we got separated Yue decided he wanted to travel the world as an ordinary human, and I wanted to go to college to be a fine arts major." Julian said nonchalantly as they continued walking down the hallway until Sakura finally found her apartment number and squealed with joy.

"Oh, I am so glad we finally found my apartment," Sakura said as she opened up the door to her apartment. "I was starting to think it might have been condemned and torn down…"

"Hey look, your apartment is right next to mine." Julian said cheerfully as they walked back into the hallway and started walking out to Sakura's car. "Do you need some help unpacking?"

"Yeah sure that'd be great!" Sakura chirped happily, she was starting college and Julian was her neighbor. Things were finally starting to look up.


	4. First Day of School!

_Chapter 3: First Day of School!_

BEEP!BEEP!BEEP!BEEP!WHACK!

"ALL RIGHT I'M UP!" Sakura shouted as she slammed her fist on the silence button, sat up in bed, and rubbed the sleep from her eyes. "Whoever had decided that having a class at 8:30 in the morning was a good idea should have his head examined." She muttered darkly as she got out of bed, shuffled into the bathroom, and began combing out her hair.

Since she graduated from high school, Sakura had decided to let her hair grow out a little bit. After several months her hair reached down past her shoulders and she started wearing it in a ponytail, but she kept her bangs short as well as the secondary pair that hung down and came to a stop at her jawline.

Then she walked to her closet, picked out a dark pink tank top, and put it on. Next she picked out a semi-clear silk top that had a beautiful intricate floral design on it that was a purplish pink color and put it on top of her first tank top. Finally she put on a soft flowing white skirt that came down to her knees and slipped on a pair of sandals.

Next came breakfast, Sakura opened her fridge and sighed in exasperation when she saw that it was nearly empty. Then something caught her eyes and she grabbed a banana along with a cup of strawberry shortcake yogurt. She quickly ate her meager breakfast, brushed her teeth, grabbed her backpack and ran out the door.

* * *

"Hello and welcome to Studio Ballet!" the teacher said cheerfully as she threw her hands up in the air enthusiastically. "My name is Ruby Moon and I will be your instructor. We will be meeting on Mondays and Wednesdays from 10-12:45am. Each week we will be learning a new dance move and at the end of the week you will have to physically demonstrate it for the class to show that you have mastered it. Any questions class?"

"Can you please repeat all of that?" Sakura asked a she nervously ran a hand through her hair. "I'm sorry, it's just that I didn't expect you to be my teacher…and…uh…hi?" she finished meekly as Ruby immediately whirled around and grabbed her in a huge bear hug.

"SAKURA! OH IT'S SO GOOD TO SEE YOU!" Ruby cried as she threw Sakura up in the air before twirling her round in circles. Finally she set Sakura down as she looked at her with a smile and asked sincerely, "I heard about the news about Li and I just wanted to tell you how sorry I am. If there's anything I can ever do for you, just let me know, ok?"

"Thanks Ruby I will." Sakura promised as she grabbed hold of the balancing pole and began working on strengthening the arches of her feet.

"Oh by the way we're throwing a party at my place in about two weeks," Ruby said nonchalantly as she handed Sakura an invitation, "you're more than welcome to come. Oh and bring a friend."

"Uh, ok sure…"Sakura said as a smile appeared on her face and she chuckled to herself. Ruby was her ballet teacher and she was invited to her first college party. She had no idea how it happened or why, but over the years she had learned it was better just not asking too many questions.


	5. Preparations

_Chapter 4: Preparations_

The next two weeks seemed to go by fast for Sakura and before she knew it the day of the party had arrived. It wasn't that she didn't want to go to the party, but she didn't know who she could possibly invite to come along with her. Then suddenly she got an idea and nervously knocked on the door to Julian's apartment.

"Hello is someone there?" Julian asked as he opened the door to his apartment and scanned the hallway for the mystery visitor. His gaze finally rested on Sakura who was standing in front of the doorway nervously holding her hands and he smiled his usual warm smile. "Oh, hey Sakura what's up?"

"Umm…uh…how would like to come to a party with me tonight?" Sakura finally asked him as he stood there watching her. He didn't say anything at first so she quickly added, "I'm sorry I know it's kind of last minute but it's just that I didn't want to go to Ruby's party all alone and I kind of figured that maybe you'd might want to come with me since you're normally here by yourself all the time."

"That's very kind of you Sakura," Julian said with a smile and looked at his watch, "What time does the party start?"

"It starts at 6 and lasts till midnight," Sakura said with a smile on her face, "you know how Ruby is."

"Ok so 6 o'clock it is. See ya!"

"See ya!"

* * *

"Ok, now what am I going to wear to this party?" Sakura mused softly as she cupped her chin in her hand while she browsed her closet for something to wear to the party. After much deliberation she finally decided on a soft pink three tiered tank top with a pair of blue jeans and a pair of tan slip on sandals.

*KNOCK!KNOCK!*

Sakura opened the door as soon as she heard the door and opened it to see Julian standing there with a smile on his face wearing a light blue t-shirt with a pair of knee high khaki pants and a pair of blue tennis shoes.

"Oh hi Julian! You look nice, are you ready for the party tonight?"

"I'm ready if you're ready! Do you mind if we take my car?"

"Sure that's fine by me." Sakura said as she slipped her arm around Julian's waiting arm and they walked out to the parking lot together.

* * *

"Are you sure this is the right place?" Julian asked Sakura with a bit of uncertainty in his voice. "This place looks more like a haunted house than someone's home."

"Yeah, this is where Ruby said the party would be," Sakura said as she knocked at the door and someone familiar opened the door. "Eli?"


	6. Kiss & Tell

Chapter 5: Kiss & Tell

"Hello Sakura, Julian," Eli said politely as he opened the door wider and gestured behind him. "The party is in the living room down the hallway and to your right."

Sakura and Julian walked silently down the blue hallway and couldn't help but stare at the suits of armor that lined both sides of the corridor. Then they turned right and saw a table lined up with all sorts of snack foods and a group of college students sitting in a big open circle.

"All right everybody you know what time it is!" Ruby sang out as she placed a dark green wine bottle on the floor in the middle of the circle. "It's time to play spin the bottle!"

"Oh hey look it's midnight all ready, I guess we should be going now…" Sakura said nervously as she grabbed Julian's arm and started to head for the door.

"Oh no you don't Sakura," Eli said with a playful smile on his face as he grabbed her shoulders and shoved her into the middle of the circle as Julian followed after her. "If I have to play, you have to play. Besides, Madison's here too."

Sakura nervously looked at Julian who simply smiled back and took his place in the circle.

_Hey baby won't you look my way?  
I can be your new addiction  
Hey baby what you gotta say?  
All you're giving me is fiction  
_

Chelsea went first and spun the bottle, it went round and round till it finally stopped and pointed at Zachary.

_I'm a sorry sucker and this happens all the time  
I found out that everybody talks  
Everybody talks, everybody talks  
_

"Well it looks like you're it." Chelsea said with a smile on her face.

"Did you know that kissing was so mysterious that it was captured in the famous artwork entitled "The Kiss"? And kissing has been around for a long time, longer than…"

"Oh just shut up and kiss me!" Chelsea said in a slightly threatening tone as she grabbed Zachary by the collar and kissed him on the lips. "There that wasn't so bad now was it?"

_It started with a whisper  
And that was when I kissed her  
And then she made my lips hurt  
I can't even chitchat  
Take me to your love ship  
Mamas always gotta back trip  
When everybody talks back  
_

"I believe it's my turn now," Eli said as he spun the bottle and watched as it spun round and round. Finally the bottle stopped spinning and pointed towards Madison.

_Hey honey you could be my drug  
You could be my new prescription  
Too much could be an overdose  
All this trash talk make me itching  
Oh my ma says  
Everybody talks, everybody talks  
Everybody talks too much  
_

Madison watched as Eli walked across the room and sat down in front of her. She blushed as he slowly leaned in and laughed softly as his warm breath tickled her cheeks. Eli smiled at Madison as their lips finally met in a soft gentle kiss.

_It started with a whisper  
And that was when I kissed her  
And then she made my lips hurt  
I can't even chitchat  
Take me to your love ship  
Mamas always gotta back trip  
When everybody talks back  
_

"But why me?" Madison asked soflty as Eli pulled away from her, "It's not like I'm special or anything…"

_Never thought I'd live to see the day  
When everybody's words got in the way  
_

"Well you're special to me, you always have been…" Eli said softly as he took his place in the circle and looked at Sakura. "Ok Sakura it's your turn."

_Hey sugar show me all your love  
All you're giving me is friction  
Hey sugar what you gotta say?  
_

Sakura spun the bottle and silently prayed it would land on a stranger as she closed her eyes and waited silently. After a few seconds had passed, she opened her eyes and to her horror the bottle was pointing towards Julian.

_It started with a whisper  
And that was when I kissed her  
And then she made my lips hurt  
I can't even chitchat  
Take me to your love ship  
Mamas always gotta back trip  
When everybody talks back_

Julian said nothing but sat there across the room just looking completely stunned.

_Everybody talks  
Everybody talks  
Everybody talks  
Everybody talks  
Everybody talks  
Everybody talks... back  
_

Slowly Sakura walked across the room, sat down in front of Julian, and slowly leaned in to kiss him. Their lips barely brushed against each other when she heard a familiar voice.

"Sakura…" immediately Sakura looked up to see Li standing against the wall of the living room watching them.

_It started with a whisper (everybody talks, everybody talks)  
And that was when I kissed her (everybody talks, everybody talks)  
_

"I…I…I just can't do this!" Sakura cried as she covered her face with her hands and ran out of the room.

_Everybody talks  
Everybody talks... back _

**Author's note: "Everybody Talks" is performed by Neon Trees**


	7. Aftermath

Chapter 6: Aftermath

"Did I do something wrong?" Julian asked Eli as Ruby rounded up the guests and made them go home.

"You did nothing wrong Julian," Eli said reassuringly, "but it might be too soon for Sakura to start another relationship after what happened with Li."

Meanwhile Madison stood out in the hallway with Sakura as she watched her friend who was sitting down against the wall, with her arms tightly hugging her knees, and had her head buried in her arms wailing loudly.

"It's not that I didn't want to kiss him," Sakura said as she looked up at her friend with tears still streaming from her eyes. "I was going to kiss him when I heard someone say my name and I looked up and I saw Li standing at the back of the room watching us. How could I betray the man I loved?"

"Sakura I know how hard it was for you to move on after you lost Li so suddenly," Madison said as she gently placed her hand on Sakura's arm and looked into her eyes. "but I think that Li would want you to be happy and move on with your life."

"Thanks Madison, you're a good friend." Sakura said as she stood up and wiped the remaining tears from her eyes.

* * *

"Well here we are, home sweet home." Julian said as he walked Sakura up to the door of her apartment. "Are you sure you're all right Sakura? You were silent the entire ride home. This isn't like you."

"I'm fine really," Sakura said as she opened the door to her apartment and stepped inside. "I'm just tired, that's all."

Julian looked at Sakura with concern in his eyes, something had happened to her at the party but she wasn't ready to tell him yet and he wasn't going to pressure her into telling him either. Something inside told him that when she was ready, she would tell him everything. Until that day came, all he could do was wait.


End file.
